oof, i'm not exactly sure. i'm sure someone who knows and is ethically aware will jump on me, but when i was younger and my family went on a lot of mexican vacations, it's what we always used on sunburns!

here's an online discussion about it, since i can't find much else. aloe is what i've used in recent years, but we still have a bottle in our bathroom cabinet that we smuggled home a long time ago.

my cousin had a terrible sunburn right before her wedding. she covered herself in plain full fat extra cold yogurt. i think she added some aloe to it. she put plastic down on the bed and took a long nap and washed it off in the shower when she woke up. i laughed when she told me about it, but it did work.

http://twitter.com/MegORourke MegORourke

aloe from an actual plant is best IMHO, but I have a cheap drugstore aloe bottle that I keep in the fridge. It's that extra cooling relief feeling

http://jans30before30.wordpress.com/ Jan Marie Caballero

agreed. best is aloe from the actual plant!

http://twitter.com/JessHolden Jessica Holden

my favorite is the CVS brand aloe with lidocaine in it. Lidocaine is from the same family as novacaine (like you get at the dentist) and acts as a numbing agent. the cooling from the aloe and numbing from the lidocaine is perfect for those bad burns. and at 2.99 a tube, you can't beat it! I'm sure you'll be able to find something comparable in Cancun! good luck!

http://www.dailybaxter.com dailybaxter

Solarcaine. It's right there on the drugstore shelves and has aloe, but it has fabulous anesthetics too.

http://twitter.com/AmyAftrReadBlog Amy Zacks

Find a whole foods and buy any lotion that has yoghurt as the base. I recommend Koores Yoghurt Cream. Yoghurt cools the skin by providing moisture to the upper level. Every time I use this my burn heels into a tan immediately and I am no longer in pain. Of course, you could also just try over the counter yoghurt, but somehow I feel that it would be messy.

Kimmy

Take aspirin. It reduces pain and inflammation!

http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/D33FUBAITQ4LBW7VB7C42ZPR44 A.

Coconut oil or shea butter! The super pure kind you get in health food shops (or L'Occitane for the shea butter). My skin is super dry and after years of trying out everything and anything, these two are by far the most moisturising things you'll find. Just apply and reapply until you skin can't absorb it anymore.

Ouch and good luck!

http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/XQA43XB5HXL2PXYVTTFIX73M24 Holli

I'm not sure about the pain, but if you want to get rid of the redness faster, I suggest tea…Just regular tea bags for iced tea…Just steep 1 or 2 in a bowl of warm water and then either take the actual tea bag and apply it to the burn, or you can use a washcloth dipped in the tea. It really helps :] Let it dry on your skin and leave it…then just wash it off when you shower.

http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/3EPF7BDU454F25K5CJP2ERIZBQ Rachel

Apple Cider Vinegar, it sounds weird, but really works wonders. It helps take the burn out (so no more damage is done) and soothes the skin. It also helps to restore the ph balance.

jordanreid

thank you all for the excellent suggestions! i ended up being unable to make it to a pharmacy pre-departure, but put a little ice on my lips to bring down the slight swelling (ouch) and doused myself in as much unscented moisturizer as my skin could take…and am now feeling A-OK (albeit a little tired from hanging at the lounge until 1:30AM and then getting up for my flight at 5:15).